Sui Generis
by Karin Ochibi-chan
Summary: AU A girl never abandoned by her mother to her grandfather, two boys who have not found their savior, and the ever-smiling girl living with the enemy. Will this alteration make a turn for the worst or will it be all the sweeter? NxMxR
1. Curiosity

**Karin-chan: Hiya everyone! Here's my first Gakuen Alice story! I'm so happy to have finally got it out. **

**Natsume: What is that crazy mind of yours up to this time?**

**Karin-chan: Read the story and you'll find out**

**Natsume: I don't want to read your stupid story!**

**Karin-chan: Well, too bad because I'm not explaining it to you!**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Gakuen Alice… begins sobbing in a corner…

**Title: **Sui Generis (It's Latin for of his, her, its, or their own kind; unique)

**Rating: **Teen

**Genre(s): **Romance/Drama

**Pairing(s): **Natsume/Mikan/Ruka

**Summary: **(AU) A new story unfolds from the original tale. A girl never abandoned to her grandfather, two boys who never met their savior, and the ever-smiling girl raised by the enemy.

**Important Facts: **

**I made Mikan be eight years old in this. She also has shorter hair.**

**Ruka was with Natsume and Surime instead of Mikan when Natsume was kidnapped by the AAO in episode 15.**

**This takes place in episode 15. **

**I hope you enjoy!**

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**Sui Generis**

**Chapter One**

**Curiosity**

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Feet walked silently through the docks as the smell of salt drifted in and out their nose. In their arms was a brown, black, and white cat that was sleeping peacefully not disturbed at all by the overwhelming scent of salt or the darkened deserted dock.

It's probably because the place reeks of fish, the person deadpanned.

The lone occupant of the dock appeared to be a child of eight years old. Her large chocolate brown eyes looked around in wonder as if she was searching for something. Her honey brown hair touched her shoulders as a black hat with cat ears sat atop her head. Her petite body was covered in a dark blue hoodie with the sleeves ending just after her elbows and brown baggy shorts. Her tiny feet were covered in black and white sneakers making no sound whatsoever as she walked.

She adjusted the sleeping cat in her arms as she turned a corner. Despite her young age, she didn't appear to be scared of the dreariness of the abandoned docks. It appears that her genuine curiosity crushed any desire to be scared.

Suddenly, the silence was disrupted by the sound of feet pounding on the ground and the panting of breath. The little girl's eyes flickered over to the sound and came across a girl a couple years older than herself with seaweed green hair. Her eyes emerald with franticness and panic. She appeared to be wearing a uniform from some elite school, the girl mused.

"Ano… what's wrong?" the little girl asked as she cocked her head to the side. The older girl snapped her head to the sound of the voice with a yelp. When she saw that it was only a little girl, she let out a sigh of relief glad that it wasn't one of the AAO chasing after her.

"You should get out of here little girl," the seaweed girl told her, "It's not safe". The little girl gave her a smile of confusion.

"Actually, I'm just looking for someone" she replied wondering why in the world this place would be dangerous. "But why are _you_ here?" she inquired to the older girl with one eyebrow rose. Was she looking for someone too?

The girl gasped, as she seemed to remember the situation and ran past her. The little girl called after her but the seaweed haired girl ignored her as she went on.

"What a weird onee-chan" the little girl spoke out as she watched her run away. She once again adjusted the cat and continued onwards as if nothing had happened. "I never even got her name. Oh well"

While the little girl walked on, the older girl ran with speed in the opposite direction looking for some kind of police officer or any adult that would help her completely forgetting about the strange little girl. Her thoughts were on other things.

'_I have to find someone or else Natsume-kun and Ruka-kun are done for!' _

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Cheeks puffed out in annoyance and frustration clearly indicating that their search is not going well at all. Five minutes of wondering around and she was ready to yell out for her intended target. She was so telling Mama that he wasn't watching her like he was supposed to. That would show him, she thought with an evil grin.

However, her thoughts were soon interrupted as she caught sight of an abandoned warehouse. Well, it didn't seem abandoned at the moment for there was a huge racket coming from it. Deciding to investigate, the little girl headed towards the warehouse.

She hid behind some crates so she wouldn't be seen and stood on her tiptoes to observe the situation. It appeared to be some kind of fight if the hostile looks and unfair numbers surrounding the two opposing them was any indication.

The two outnumbered seemed to be the same age as the girl she saw before. It seems they were from the same school too since one of the boys was wearing a similar uniform to the perm girl.

The first boy had raven-black hair and crimson eyes. He wore casual clothing like a dark green long sleeve shirt and army cargo pants. He glared at all of the suited men with so much hate that if looks could kill, they would all be six feet under. However, if looks could kill, that would mean that he wouldn't have to damage his already weakened state.

The second boy didn't appear as hostile as the first, but he glared at them in fury. His blue eyes alit and blonde hair slightly ruffled from the fight. He wore a uniform similar to the seaweed-haired girl.

The little girl watched in pure curiosity and ignorance as to what was going on. She didn't understand the hostile looks, or the killing intent in the air. She questioned the glaring and the battle before her having never been exposed to this sorta thing. She just watched the two boys in interest as if it was a movie playing out before her eyes.

The raven-haired boy summoned a ball of fire in his hand. The little girl's eyes widened as she realized just what those two boys are.

'_Alices!' _her thoughts screamed with excitement. She had never seen any children with alices before. Everyone back at the base was well into adulthood, which made it very lonely for the young girl who desired a playmate often.

Maybe she should ask for them to play with her. She always wanted to play with other kids like normal children, but alas, the only companion she has is her fat cat she carries around with her.

After what seemed like an eternity, the fire caster spoke.

"Move" he commanded.

"You won't get away," a voice said with a hint of cockiness in the tone. The curious brown eyes lit up in recognition as she recognized that voice right away.

"Move" the boy commanded again with more rage. The fire crackled and burned brighter. The little girl's eyes widened as she realized what the boy was about to do. Didn't he see that those people were alices too?

Without understanding or thinking, the little girl rose out from her hiding place, leaving her cat behind, and hugged the boy from behind.

"NO!" she yelled out. The boy's crimson eyes widened as well as all the others in the warehouse. The ball of fire disappeared before it had the chance to be flung at the older red-haired male.

Not really getting why _she _was here, the red-haired male smirked and took off his earning. A shock wave radiated throughout the warehouse with him and the little girl being the only ones unaffected.

The boy passed out in her arms just as his companion. The suited men were all lying on the floor letting out painful moans at the sudden shock wave from the red-haired male's alice.

The red-haired male readjusted his earning and nodded for two of the men to pick up the two captives. With some difficulty, the weary men carried the two unconscious alices onto the boat waiting at one of the ports.

The male's violet eyes gazed upon the young girl with a mix of confusion, amusement, and scolding.

"Now tell me," he said to the little girl, "Why on earth are you here when I clearly instructed you to say at the hotel until I came to get you?" he asked his arms crossed.

The little girl's response was sticking out her tongue as she picked up her cat who seemed to have just woken up.

"You were taking too long!" she retorted. "I got bored and decided to look for you," she explained at the same time as petting her chubby cat. "I'm telling Mama you weren't taking good care of me!" she told the older man with a pout.

The red-haired man sighed and patted her head.

"Gomen, Gomen" he apologized sincerely. "I didn't mean for it to take so long. There were many unexpected delays," he explained hoping that the little girl would change her mind about telling on him to his senpai. He knows how much the woman was overprotective of her daughter and would probably send him to the hospital for leaving her unsupervised.

"Fine, I forgive you" the little girl said haughtily, "but you owe me an ice cream, 'kay?" she proposed to the older man. He patted her head showing that he agreed.

"Let's go" he said and took her hand.

"I can't wait to see Mama!" the little girl cheered. "Ne, Uncle Reo?" she asked as she turned her brown-eyed gaze to him.

"Ah, it will be good to return home to Yuka-senpai" Reo told her while they boarded the ship. "She will surely be happy that you returned home safely, Mikan-chan"

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**Karin-chan: Woah! Totally Alternate universe wouldn't you say? I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of this story. Oh, and I would like you guys to know that Ruka and Natsume are cold-hearted at first since Mikan never showed up at Alice Academy. Also, Mikan doesn't know Hotaru either. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter.**

**Natsume: It sucked.**

**Karin-chan: I wasn't asking **_**your **_**opinion! I was asking the readers! **

**Natsume: Che**

**Karin-chan: "Che" yourself. Anyway, I hope you will be kind enough to leave a review for me. Thanks and see you next chapter! **

**Natsume: Don't review her. Make her weep from readers neglecting her. **

**Karin-chan: EH?! Natsume, you meanie!**

**See ya next time! **


	2. Excitement

**Karin-chan: Hehe! I'm back with vengeance! **

**Natsume: Who were you getting revenge on?**

**Karin-chan: Eh? I had to be getting revenge on someone to say that? **

**Natsume: **_**(slaps forehead) **_**Baka, that's what the "vengeance" part is for. **

**Karin-chan: Oooohhhh! So that's what that expression is used for! **

**Natsume: Must not light the author on fire. Must not light the author on fire… (you get the rest)**

**Karin-chan: **_**(Completely ignoring Natsume as she reads the reviews) **_**yay! I got reviews! Time to reply! **

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Gakuen Alice no matter how much I want to.

**Replies to the Reviewers of Chapter One:**

**AnimeLoverXXX- **Congratulations on being this story's first reviewer! I'm glad you enjoyed the first chapter and I hope you enjoy the second one as well.

**Dominiqueanne- **thanks for adding this to your favorites list. I'm happy it caught your interest.

**Sherea- **thanks for the compliment! Hopefully, your eagerness will be satisfied by this chapter.

**Animecrazyy- **well, the wait is over! I hope you find this chapter suitable to your taste.

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**Sui Generis **

**Chapter Two**

**Excitement**

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As soon as the ship docked, eight-year-old Mikan raced off in search of her mother. No doubt the woman would be there waiting for her and Uncle Reo's safe return.

Sure enough, there was Akemi Yuka standing not so far away. Her dark brown eyes searched around the docks until she caught sight of a hat with cat ears knowing full well it was her offspring.

"Mama!" Mikan gave off a joyful shout while she launched herself at her mother's waist. Her warm brown eyes alit with cheerfulness as she gazed upon the woman who brought her into this world. Mikan's chubby feline companion meowed as it sat at its master's feet.

Yuka hugged her daughter back. She was relieved to see that Mikan was still in one piece. Although, generally speaking, she guessed she should be worried if Reo was the one still in one piece given her daughter's tendency to attract trouble.

Speaking of her former kouhai, he was currently walking off the ship and heading towards them with a tired look in his violet eyes. No doubt Mikan had kept him up all night after his capture of the Kuro Neko.

"How'd it go?" Yuka inquired when he reached them. Mikan hadn't let go of her mother yet, but she was completely tuned into the conversation. Reo sighed and ruffled his hair.

"It was troublesome, but a success none the less" he told her. "We also have another alice as well. Don't know what he can do though" Mikan looked up at her mother with excitement after Reo's statement.

"Guess what Mama! They're only two years older than me! I can have playmates now!" Mikan exclaimed her eyes alit with eagerness. Yuka's expression turned serious as she kneeled down to be at Mikan's level of vision.

"Mikan," she began slowly. "They won't be able to play with you honey" she told the child with sad eyes. Mikan faced her with a confused expression of sadness. It was so sad that Yuka wanted to cry.

Her daughter was so ignorant. She had no idea about the feud with the Academy or about the AAO's true purpose. Yuka had raised her away from that, only having Mikan look at the AAO as her family. She promised herself that when Mikan was born, she wouldn't have her involved in this until she was much older.

However, the price she had to pay for protecting her daughter was keeping her lonely. She knew that Mikan had wanted to make friends closer to her age and play around with other children. Nonetheless, since they couldn't risk even the slightest chance of the government or the academy finding them, her daughter had to bare with her lonesome lifestyle.

"How come Mama?" Mikan asked. Uncle Reo said that those two boys would be with them from now on. If so, why couldn't she play with them? "They'll be staying with us, right?" she questioned the older woman.

"Well," Yuka started to say, "What I mean is, Mikan, they can't play with you right away" seeing as to how she had gained her daughter's curiosity, Yuka continued, "Right. They're very tired right now so they can't play with you yet, but I promise sweetheart, you can play with them soon, okay?" she asked as she gently stroked her child's head.

"Okay Mama" Mikan said with a smile and ran off to greet the other AAO member, Uncle Shiki, that accompanied her mother. Yuka and Reo watched her the entire time.

"You know, lying only makes it worse," Reo told her. Yuka nodded solemnly.

"I know" was all Yuka replied. Her eyes were filled with regret as she gazed upon her child.

'_I'm sorry, Mikan' _Yuka apologized, _'you'll never get to play with them for they are our prisoners' _

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"Come on, Kyon" Mikan gestured to her cat as they walked through the halls back at the AAO base—her home. "Stop being lazy and help me find the way to those boys" she told the chubby cat.

The cat, Kyon, only meowed and settled for a spot on the tilted floor causing its master to hang her head in hopelessness.

"Lazy bum" she muttered. With a determined look, she picked up her cat—who meowed in protest—and continued on her journey.

It had been three days since she had returned home. Everything was at its usual routine right now: eating breakfast, getting dressed, going to her lessons, skipping out on her lessons, return to lessons after being found, eating lunch, playing around the base, eat dinner, bathe, and go to bed. Not much of an interesting routine if you asked her.

But now she had a new schedule, she reminded herself with glee: get up, eat breakfast, get dressed, go to her lessons, skip out on lessons to look for playmates, return to lessons because she was found, eat lunch, look for playmates again, eat dinner, bathe, and go to bed. Yep, much more interesting schedule now that she had something to look forward to everyday.

It wasn't just the possibility of finding her targets that thrilled her, but the exploring as she does it. She had lived here for eight years and even she herself does not know all the cricks and crannies. It was very entertaining on her easily bored self these days.

"Meow" Kyon whined as Mikan adjusted him in her arms again. It was a miracle she could carry that huge fur ball at all considering that he was big enough to cover her stomach up to her neck. She really needed to stop giving him extra treats when Mama wasn't looking.

"Let's go down this way," Mikan said as she made a left into the unknown corridor; however, her plans of continuing were crushed to a pulp when she felt someone yank on her hood from behind.

"Geez, you get harder and harder to find every time," Reo muttered as he proceeded to drag the eight-year-old back to her panicky teacher by her hood. He honestly felt sorry for the older woman because of her many breakdowns when Mikan disappeared. This girl was going to put someone in therapy one day for sure.

"Nyah! Uncle Reo, I don't wanna go back to boring lessons!" Mikan whined, but her whines were deaf on Reo's ears for he continued his trek back to Mikan's tutor as if he didn't hear her whines at all.

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A week has past and Mikan's searches have been… unsuccessful. She banged her head on the kitchen table with a groan. Some of the AAO members gave her looks of pity while others looked amused obviously used to the child's behavior.

"I'm guessing whatever scheme you have this time is not working out well," said a male in his twenties with wavy shoulder-length dark hair. Mikan turned her head in his direction and nodded.

"It's worse than 'not well', Uncle Ishimori" Mikan told him. "It's downright failure" she moaned out. She then proceeded to eat her Fruit Loops begrudgingly. Ishimori smiled and patted her head.

"If it's you, I'm sure it will work out. I mean, look at all your other pranks that I thought would fail miserably but then turned out to be a hit" Ishimori told her as he chuckled. The child could come up with the most impossible stunts and yet they would go perfectly.

"You're right, Uncle Ishimori" Mikan said determined. "I can't give up! It would put shame on me if I did!" she exclaimed as she clenched her fists.

"Good, now do you mind not standing on the kitchen table?"

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"Magical Trevor, Magical Trevor, something, something, because he's Magical Trevor" Mikan sang out as she walked in the deserted hallways. She was currently singing the Magical Trevor song to pass the time… as you could see, she doesn't remember most of the words.

"How are they?" a cold voice made her stop singing. Her brown eyes drifted to a doorway with a crack of it open. She turned to Kyon and put her finger in a "Be quiet" motion. Her cat got the picture and climbed into her arms as to not make a sound.

"They haven't said a word, nor have they eaten anything we've given them" a voice replied. Mikan realized it right away to be Uncle Shiki.

She tiptoed to the door and peeked inside. Uncle Shiki was currently talking to the snake-man—as Mikan dubbed him. His code name was Medusa, but his real name was Miharu Kanbu. Mikan usually didn't see him very often, and in the rare times she did see him, a bone-chilling feeling crept up and down her spine. Mama had told her many of times to stay away from him. And for once, Mikan listened without protest.

"What about their alices?" Kanbu asked with a cool sleek voice. Mikan gulped silently as sweat trickled down her brow. Shiki shook his head.

"We haven't found out the alice of the blonde boy, but the Kuro Neko tries to use his alice when he isn't so weak. However, the alice barriers drain his strength and stop him from doing anything that could let him escape" Shiki explained in monotone. His voice was so serious, Mikan noted. Not at all the voice of caring Uncle Shiki.

"Still has some spark left in him I see" Kanbu said with a cold smirk. "Well, eventually, he'll break. Both of them will" the cold smirk turned into a crazed sadistic smile that nearly sent Mikan running.

'_They must be talking about those boys,'_ Mikan concluded. While most of the stuff she didn't understand, she definitely knew that seeing snake-man's insane smirk was not a good sign. Now she definitely needed to find them. Not just to see if they'll play with her, but to make sure that snake-man hadn't done something horrible to them. Medusa was the only person's alice that Mikan didn't know of. Yuka just told her to stay away from him and leave it at that.

"You're dismissed Shiki" Kanbu told him. Shiki nodded and headed towards the door. Mikan let out a small gasp and sprinted away from the door to hide behind a corner. A moment later Shiki exited the door and walked into the opposite direction. Mikan let out a sigh of relief. Kyon quietly meowed as if agreeing with his master.

If Medusa was involved, the situation couldn't be good, Mikan decided. She should pick up her search a notch, she concluded. The sooner she finds those boys, the sooner her fears of Medusa's involvement will fade.

'_But how am I going find them?' _Mikan asked herself in despair. Suddenly, she caught sight of something shiny hooked on Shiki's waist as he walked away. Keys! They were keys! The gears in her mind began turning as a plan formed in her head. It paid off to be a master prankster at times.

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It was around dinnertime when Mikan's plan was put into action. She kept her eyes on Uncle Shiki until he left the room. Telling her mother that she was going to the bathroom before eating, Mikan exited the kitchen to follow him.

Shiki's steps were normal. He didn't seem to show any signs of being followed. Mikan took this as a signal to keep going with the plan. As she followed him, Mikan took her time to remember the path they were taking since she would be returning later.

Finally, Shiki stopped at a door Mikan never saw before. He took off the keys and unlocked the door leading to a dark and dreary staircase. Mikan didn't dare to follow, but kept her eyes on the door for when he would return.

After a few minutes, she heard Shiki's steps coming back up. Now was her chance! With eyes shut tight, Mikan ran forward and tripped herself ready for the pain.

Plan is now commenced.

"wwwwwwwwwaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!"

Shiki raced up the stairs when he heard a cry only to find Mikan sobbing. He walked over to her concerned—not at all wondering what she was doing here since he was used to her roaming around—as she pointed to her knee. It was scraped and bleeding a little.

"It hurts, it hurts, Uncle Shiki," Mikan cried. "I'm going to die! I'm bleeding so much! I'm going to die!" she shouted distraught.

Shiki sweat dropped at her exaggeration and picked her up into his arms. She hugged him back sobbing while he proceeded to carry her back to the kitchen. Yuka was probably going to go into a frenzy and kill someone when she sees Mikan hurt. Most likely, it will be him.

Without Shiki realizing it, Mikan kicked the keys off his belt sending them into the air and catching it with one of her hands that were around his neck.

Mission accomplished.

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"Now tell me," Yuka began as she looked at her comrades. Her eyebrow twitching. "Why is my daughter getting hurt if you all are supposed to be watching her?!" Yuka yelled at the rest of the AAO members present at the dinner table (A/n: minus Medusa since he doesn't eat with them). They all shook in fear at the woman's overprotectiveness and shrugged.

That wasn't the best move.

"Idiots!" Yuka screeched as she threw multiple kitchen utensils at them. "She's eight for Christ's sake! Don't you think she would have the tendency to get hurt! You all love Mikan, don't you?! You have a shitty way of showing it if you all don't pitch in to take care of her! What kind of family are you?!" Yuka continued her rant as the AAO members ran for their lives from the various kitchen weapons.

As for Mikan, she just sat at the kitchen table with Kyon and ate her dinner as if her mama wasn't trying to kill the rest of her family. She made a note to finish all of her dinner tonight since her mama seems stressed out at the moment.

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When it was around midnight, Mikan's door creaked open as a head with a cat hat poked their head out. Seeing that the coast was clear, Mikan crept out of her domain with Kyon in her arms and shut the door behind her in silence. Once that was done, Mikan began her journey towards the door where Uncle Shiki was earlier, keys in pocket.

Since it was nighttime, Mikan was dressed in her sleep attire. She wore light purple pajama pants with light and dark blue stars all over them and a dark purple long-sleeve shirt with the sleeves ending at her knuckles. Her usual black cat hat was atop of her head along with her usual black and white sneakers placed on her feet.

"I know it's around here somewhere," Mikan muttered to herself. Kyon wiggled out of her arms and ran in the left direction, letting out a quiet meow as he did so. "Hey! Come back Kyon!" Mikan whispered while chasing after him. It seemed like ten minutes before Kyon abruptly stopped. Mikan finally caught up panting as she placed her hands on her knees.

Kyon meowed to get her attention. Mikan turned her gaze at him sitting beside a door. Her eyes lit up in recognition and looked at her cat with a big grin.

"Good job, Kyon!" Mikan congratulated her cat in a whisper. Once that was finished, Mikan walked over towards the door. Her heart pounded in excitement when she realized that afterten days searching, she would finally get to meet her playmates.

Placing the key into the lock, it made a small clicking sound before propping open. The door made a small creaking sound as Mikan opened it only to be met with a dark abyss with the stone stairs the only way of getting to it.

Nevertheless, instead of being afraid and wanting to turn back, Mikan's eagerness and desire to explore got the better of her. With Kyon in her arms, she took her first step of the journey down the dark depths of the staircase.

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**Karin-chan: Woah, I gotta give Mikan her props! Getting herself hurt to swipe the keys and using her age to an advantage was pretty smart. **

**Natsume: all that says to me is that she's capable of evil pranks**

**Karin-chan: Well, she is very mischievous in this fic… OMG, Natsume, you read my fic!**

**Natsume: **_**(shifty eyes) **_**No! I didn't read your fic! Who would want to read a stupid fic like this anyway? **

**Karin-chan: Erm… the people who reviewed me? **

**Natsume: T.T… **

**Karin-chan: Ahem, anyway, who do you think Mikan should meet first? Natsume? or Ruka? **

**See ya next time! **


	3. Unnerving

Karin-chan: Okay, I feel like updating so here I am

**Karin-chan: Okay, I feel like updating so here I am!**

**Natsume: **_**(sweat drops) **_**you feel like it?**

**Karin-chan: yeah, I usually don't do anything when I don't feel like it**

**Natsume: so in other words, you're **_**LAZY **_

**Karin-chan: Am not! … okay, yeah, I am…**

**Disclaimer: **I… don't… own… sniffle… Gakuen Alice!! Sobs because of my loss.

**Added Note: **erm… sorry everyone, but I messed up Yuka's name in the last chapter. It's actually "Azumi Yuka" not "Akemi Yuka". Don't know where I got the "ke" part from. Anyway, I want wanted to clear that up for you guys. Again, sorry.

**Replies to the Reviewers from Chapter 2:**

**AnimeLoverXXX- **it's good to know that you like this fic. Thanks for requesting on who Mikan should meet first.

**Midnight-Moonlight-Gal- **Thanks for the compliment.

**Sherea- **thanks for answering my request. Yes, Mikan does rock, that smart sneaky chibi.

**Niceladysakura- **if you read the manga chapters 35-42 in the Gakuen Alice manga, you'd know who Miharu Kanbu is, but to save you the trouble, he's part of the AAO being the superior to Yuka's group. He also has the Stone Alice transforming anything/anyone to stone.

**Animecrazyy- **thanks for requesting. You're the first one who voted for Natsume first. He needs some love too.

**Gakuenalicelover- **Sorry about the delay. Hope you like this chapter.

**AFanOfGakuenAlice- **Sorry I took so long. Computer problems.

**GAL- **I feel really bad about making you wait. I hope you like this chapter. You're the second one to request Natsume.

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**Sui Generis**

**Chapter Three**

**Silence**

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The darkness engulfed Mikan as she descended into the cold stone passageway. She had never been here before in her life, nor had she known about this mystifying monotonous stairwell.

Kyon meowed as if to say he didn't like this place. Mikan just patted him on the head and continued on without a glance back. She knew that she could always turn back. That she could just forget about everything she had seen and forget about those two boys.

Consequently, she knew that no matter how hard she would try, she would never be able to repress her desire to know, to discover, to explore. Her curiosity always got the better side of her rather than her rational judgment.

After what seemed like an eternity in that dark solitude, Mikan felt her feet touch the floor of the stone stairway. With a smile of relief, she proceeded forward not at all having a clue on to where she was going. Nonetheless, Kyon could see in the dark and guided his master through the pitch-black stone hallway. He meowed certain ways as to alert her on danger and caution.

Mikan followed her cat's line of direction as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Mind you it wasn't that great, but at least she could somewhat prevent herself from walking straight into a wall. She unconsciously winced as she recalled that time at Christmas when a drunken Uncle Reo ran straight into a wall when she was five. Mama said no more egg nog for him ever again.

Kyon's meow drew her from her reminiscing when they stood in front of a wooden door. Mikan reached up and pushed it open revealing a medieval dungeon chamber with cells lined up on each side across from each other in the stone hallway. There had to be at least fourteen in all with seven on each side.

While Kyon inched back in fear, Mikan pursued forward forcing the scaredy cat to follow his master. Everything was dark but Mikan's eyes made out the empty cells one by one. Her expression dropped as it morphed into a look of disappointment. It then became a look of frustration.

"Argh! Why is Kami-sama getting my hopes up like that only to crush them into oblivion!?" she cried out in outrage. She kicked one on the metal bars in her anger, but that only caused her pain. She let out a yelp of pain and held her foot. She hopped around a couple of times as she hissed out in pain. Kyon let out a meow of concern as he looked upon his master in her painful state. He then sweat dropped when he heard her begin a string of curses that she overheard from her uncles.

Suddenly, Mikan stopped her foul-mouthing and froze as she heard a slight sound of movement. She looked around in an effort to catch any sign of life besides her and Kyon with difficulty.

Her eyes stopped as they came across the last cell in the room. There sat a silhouette of someone in the shadows. She squinted to try and see more. It appears the person occupying the cell was just woken up by her shouting of words not meant for her Mama's ears.

A few seconds passed before Mikan's face broke into a grin and raced over to where the cell was. She apologized to Kami-sama and thanked him in her head for her find. Her excited face peered through the bars as her small hands clutched them tightly in a fruitless effort to contain her enthusiasm.

"Hey there!" she greeted in a loud whisper. She didn't want to scare them with another shout or have another risk of someone else hearing her. "What's your name?" she asked grinning at him. Judging by the size of the figure, she knew it was one of her playmates. Her thoughts about where was the other one were pushed in the back of her mind as her happiness at finally meeting one of them overcame it.

She didn't receive an answer. That caused her to raise an eyebrow in confusion. She was sure they had heard her. She then decided to try again.

"Hello?" she called out softly. "Can you hear me?" she asked to be sure. If he couldn't hear her then she would have to talk in a normal tone to make sure he would.

Still no reply. This caused Mikan to furrow her brow. Why wasn't he answering her? Was he trying to ignore her? Her eyes searched around to see if she could find something that would get his attention. Kyon sat across the narrow stone hallway against the cell across from the one she was standing at.

Abruptly, Mikan's eyes stopped when she caught sight of a plate with a small piece of stale bread and a glass of water. Her eyebrow knitted in confusion as question marks floated above her head. She was very clueless as to why stale bread and a glass of water was doing here unless…

"Is that your dinner?" she asked with shock. She could never just be satisfied with just _that_ as a meal. She was a little girl with a big appetite, which her mother was grateful for because she finished all her vegetables.

Her brain clicked with an idea and she grinned at them again.

"You must be hungry. Don't worry; I'll go get you something good to eat. I know I would hate to just have bread and water. Just ask my mama and she'll say the same thing" she told him and backed away from the steel bars and walked over to Kyon.

"You watch over him, okay Kyon? No hiding like some scaredy cat, ne?" she said as she gazed upon her cat with suspicion that he might do just that as soon as she left. Kyon let out a protesting meow as to show his master he did not like being left down here without her. Mikan just rolled her eyes and scratched behind his ear.

"I'll be right back. I just want you to keep Onii-chan company while I'm gone, okay?" she asked him. He gave off a meow of defeat showing that he understood but he didn't approve. Mikan smiled at him and rose to her feet. "Good, I'll be right back" she said and raced towards the wooden door and left.

She was careful to make her way back up the stairs. Once she was back in the hallway that held the door leading to the stone staircase, she began her trek to the kitchens memorizing the path as she did so. She would need to come back after all. And she didn't want her cat to have a seizure if she took too long.

When she came into the kitchens, she climbed up on the counter to reach the cabinets and retrieved the Fruit Loops box. She then got an empty bowl and some milk. Once she was done filling the bowl up with cereal and pouring the milk in, she got a spoon and took some fruit from the basket in the middle of the island (A/N: in case no one knows what that is, it's like a high table in the middle of the kitchen with cabinets and sometimes a mini sink or mini stove. You usually put food there for a buffet at parties and special occasions). With her mission accomplished, Mikan raced back towards the doorway and traveled down the staircase careful not to spill/drop anything.

She had to push the wooden door open with her hip to get where her probably panicking cat and playmate were. Her eyes blinked twice when she saw that said panicking cat was not where she left him.

"Kyon?" she called out in a whisper. She walked forward looking around. A meow answered her when she arrived at the cell where her playmate was. Her eyes widened in surprise as she saw her cat inside next to her playmate. When she found her voice, she said

"Kyon, you little devil! So you _could_ slip through bars, you fat lazy cat!" her tone was appalled that her cat had been faking not being able to slip through small places to assist with her pranks because of his overweight. "No more extra fish for you, mister" she would've wagged a finger at him if they weren't full at the moment.

Kyon meowed in protest, but Mikan didn't pay him heed. Instead, she directed her attention to the human in the cell. She gave him a wry smile.

"Gomen nasai, Onii-chan. Kyon can be a scaredy cat at times, but if he's in here, he must like you. That's a rare feat since Kyon can be a pest with others besides me" she explained. She didn't get an answer, but she still continued. "I brought you some food. Sorry it isn't much though. I didn't want to take the risk of waking the others if I cooked something"

Her smile disappeared as if she had just realized something. There wasn't really a way to _give_ him the food since the bars weren't wide enough for her to slip the bowl of cereal in without spilling it. And she didn't think that an apple and a banana would be enough for him to eat if he was only eating stale bread.

"Oh shoot" she muttered. "I feel dumb right now" she said to herself. This is what must be what Uncle Ishimori calls a stupid moment. She wanted to bang her head against something for her idiocy.

Kyon's meow caught her awareness. He sat staring at her through the bars at her feet. He appeared to be gesturing to something. Mikan looked at him in confusion while she tried to decipher her cat's signs.

"What're you getting at, Kyon?" Mikan asked. She felt dizzy from all the confusion swarming around her head. "I have no idea on what you're saying" she told him sheepishly.

A scratch to her leg made her hiss in pain and move away.

"What was that for? That hurt, Kyon" she told him. She moved again and this time she heard a distinct jingle from her pocket. You could practically see the light bulb go off in her head as it clicked.

"Oohhh…" she drawled in understanding. She adjusted her load of food and retrieved the keys that she stole from Uncle Shiki earlier. Her chocolate brown eyes averted to the cell door. "Now I feel even dumber" she said to herself and went over to it.

After a couple of tries in searching for the correct key, Mikan had successfully opened the cell door that separated her from her playmate and cat. She walked in not bothering to shut the door behind her.

Her face was in the form of a grin in satisfaction. Mikan approached to boy that was two years older than her and sat down. Kyon had gone back to the boy's side and purred as he scratched behind one of his ears.

Mikan ignored her cat's purring as she placed the bowl and fruit on a plate she snagged from the china closet in between them.

"I hope you like Fruit Loops" she said with a shy smile. "They're my favorite kind of cereal so I thought I would share it with you" she told him.

Now that she was close enough, Mikan could see that it was the blonde boy from the warehouse. His dim blue eyes didn't look at her. Instead, they chose to look at her cat. Mikan noticed this and grinned.

"Onii-chan," she spoke, "Do you have any pets? You're really good with animals" she told him in admiration. She didn't receive a response, but she could tell that he was relaxing to her presence a little.

"His name is Kyon" she said. "We're partners. He's been with me since I was six years old. I think Mama noticed that I was lonely and got me a pet to keep me company. We've been inseparable ever since. He even comes with me to my lessons which my sensei doesn't like, but oh well" Mikan explained as she smiled fond of the memory of the first time she had taken Kyon to one of her lessons. Her first teacher was allergic to cats apparently.

"What are your teachers like, Onii-chan?" Mikan asked. "Are they noisy? Or maybe they're mean like this one teacher in a book I read called _Harry Potter_? Are they really nice?" she asked with a hint of eagerness. She was curious to know if a regular school was like her experience with teachers was.

Still no reply. This caused her smile to drop. She knew he was listening, but he just wouldn't talk to her. Maybe he didn't like her.

"Um… what about friends? Onii-chan surely has friends" she suggested out meekly. Her heart pounded in desire for the answer. Out of all the things she wanted to know, this was the biggest. She wanted to know what it was like to have friends. To play and interact with others. To have someone to talk to that could answer back. To have someone to keep secrets with. It wasn't like she wasn't satisfied with Kyon, but it would be nice to have a companion who could understand her and give her comfort besides licking her face.

He seemed to have tensed up in anger making Mikan look down ashamed at herself. The other boy here must be his friend. Where was he anyway? Mikan didn't dare to ask in fear of making him madder.

Without a word, she stood up and gathered Kyon who gave a quiet meow in objection and question. She went back to the door and shut it. She didn't look at him as she stood outside the cell door.

"You better eat that. It would be a shame for food to go to waste" she said in a sorrowful whisper. With that, Mikan walked out of the dungeons and back up to the base with her head down in disappointment.

She never saw him hesitantly taking the food and eating it quietly.

**--**

**Karin-chan: Okay, third chapter done! Sorry it took so long to update this. First it was the computer problems and then it was the obsession with Narnia, but now I have come to work on this story. I'm sorry I made you all wait. **

**Natsume: You made us wait for that? That was horrible! **

**Karin-chan: Shut up! You're just mad that you weren't in it yet!**

**Natsume: Was not! **_**(Lights fire in his palm) **_

**Karin-chan: Yes you were **_**(takes out marshmallows and a stick and starts roasting marshmallows with Natsume's flames) **_

**Natsume: Don't use my flames to give yourself food! **

**Karin-chan: But I was making smores for us. Writing builds up an appetite, you know. **

**Natsume:… what kind of chocolate did you get?**

**Karin-chan: Hershey's Milk Chocolate. Why? **

**Natsume: …Fine, I'll let you cook your smores, but I get some. **

**Karin-chan: Oh, you're a Hershey's fan! That will please the fangirls**

**Natsume: Shut up and give me a smore before I burn you to a crisp. **

**See ya next time! **


	4. Enthusiasm

Karin-chan: Do you have any threes, Natsume

**Karin-chan: Do you have any threes, Natsume?**

**Natsume: Go fish**

**Karin-chan: You're lying**

**Natsume: Am not… how do you know I have threes anyway?**

**Karin-chan: Cause I'm smart… wait, you just admitted you had threes! Hand them over! **

**Natsume: Shouldn't you be introducing the chapter instead of accusing me of cheating?**

**Karin-chan: Oh right! Hello everyone! Here's the forth chapter to Sui Generis! I hope you like it! **_**(Turns to Natsume) **_**And don't think I forgot about those threes! Give them up already! **

**Natsume: No! **_**(Runs away with the threes)**_

**Karin-chan: Come back here! **_**(Runs after Natsume and leaves the readers to read the chapter) **_

**Disclaimer: **If I honestly owned Gakuen Alice, do you think I would be here?

**Replies to Reviews from Chapter 3: **

**Princessofcrown101- **the answer to your question is because when you're a child, you're more caught up in ignorance and innocence. Usually around ten or so, you begin to catch on to what's going on around you. I thought it would be better if Mikan was younger to help portray she's still an innocent child just caught up in this battle between alices. Also, I thought she would be so adorable if she was eight!

**AznBeauty18- **You're wish has come true for I am updating soon.

**Blizzel- **yes, Ruka should be ashamed for being mean to an eight-year-old who was only trying to be friends with him. I also can't wait to write the chapter where Mikan will meet Natsume, which will be very soon I might add.

**--**

**Sui Generis **

**Chapter Four**

**Request**

**-**

**-**

**-**

"No! Go to the left! The left you moron! Argh!" a frustrated Shiki yelled out as the football player of the team he was cheering for didn't score. Reo and Ishimori groaned and threw back their hands in hopelessness. As you can see, the football game they were watching was not in their favor.

Mikan sat Indian style on the floor eating a piece of pizza as she watched the game. Kyon was playing with a ball of yarn beside her.

"Stupid morons" muttered Yuka as she watched the males mope about the game. It was Friday which meant football night. All the males in the AAO—not including Medusa—were present to watch the game in the den while the women went to hang around in the kitchens to catch up and talk while watching a chick flick on the little TV in the kitchen.

Mikan being the only child in the AAO was free to do as she pleased on Friday nights. In which she took pleasure in watching the football game with the males instead of the chick flick with the females. She didn't understand all the fuss and drama anyway. Football was much more entertaining in her opinion.

Mikan then felt herself being picked up. She gazed into the eyes of her mother whose look to her meant that it was time for her to go to bed. Mikan made a little whining sound and began protesting.

"Mama, it's only ten! Can't I have five more minutes?" Mikan pleaded to Yuka. While anyone would've caved in from Mikan's cuteness right away, Yuka had enough self-control to shake her head.

"It's an hour past your bedtime, missy. I let you stay up an hour because it looked like the game wasn't going to end, but now you need your sleep" Yuka told her.

"You know Mikan-chan," Reo began as he took a sip of his soda, "I read somewhere that staying up late is bad for a child's brain development. Do you want to be a stupid girl, Mikan-chan?" he asked her. Mikan stared at him for three seconds before sticking her tongue out.

"You're making that up" Shiki whispered to Reo, who shrugged in return. "I haven't heard that anywhere"

"That's because you never pay attention" Reo replied earning a whack on the head from Shiki.

"Enough, whether it's true or not, she's going to bed" Yuka snapped at the males who flinched.

"Fine, take our favorite chibi away, Yuka" one male said. "We'll tell you how it ends, okay kiddo?" he told Mikan.

"You better" she said threateningly. That child had the capability to be as scary as her mother, if not scarier when she wanted to be.

With that said, Mikan let her mother take her away from the den and towards her room. Kyon followed behind them quietly.

"Hey Mama," Mikan called out. "Is it really true that'll I'll be stupid if I go to bed late?" asked Mikan earning a chuckle from Yuka. It's been about two weeks since she had began staying up later than usual do to the fact that she's been visiting her silent playmate.

Mikan didn't know whether or not he would ever talk to her, but Mikan couldn't just let him stay all alone. Even if he didn't like her, he seemed to like Kyon and Kyon liked visiting him too. It was the least she could do for her feline partner who had grown attached to the blonde boy.

For the past two weeks, Mikan had been sneaking out of her room and sneaking food down for him. At first, she found out that he would eat as soon as she left but now he starts earlier when she's about to leave. It seems he had somewhat become accustomed to her presence enough to eat in front of her.

Kyon liked him very much. As soon as they arrived with the boy's food, Kyon would slip through the bars to sit at the boy's side. Mikan wasn't used to Kyon's behavior with acting friendly to someone else besides her, but she kept quiet because the boy seemed to enjoy Kyon's company in the cell.

Mikan's thoughts then drifted. What was he doing in a cell anyway? It was the first time she had questioned herself like this. Did he do something bad? It didn't seem like it because he probably would've done something bad to her by now, right?

Then there was the other dilemma. It appears that the other boy was being kept somewhere else from the blonde boy. She pondered on how she was going to find him, and if so, would he not like her like the blonde boy? It made her sadder just thinking about it.

"Goodnight, sweetheart" Her mama said as she kissed her forehead. Mikan didn't even realize that she was now in her pajamas and was tucked in bed. She waited for her mother to exit the door and waiting at least ten minutes before getting out of bed and leaving to the kitchens to retrieve food.

Her steps made little sound as she traveled. Kyon was fast asleep back in her room and Mikan didn't have to heart to wake him for he must've been more tired than she was due to their nightly escapades.

She crept into the kitchen aware of the female voices chatting on the other side of the kitchen. Her chocolate brown eyes flickered back and forth between the females and the open pizza box on the counter. Once she had retrieved a piece and a paper plate, she snuck out of the kitchen with relief and proceeded to her destination.

The path had become so familiar to Mikan that she didn't need the assistance of Kyon or a light anymore. Her mind seemed to be on autopilot as she walked down the stone steps the keys still in her possession. Once Shiki had realized his keys were missing after the first night of her adventures, he just simply shrugged and got a replacement pair. No one had suspected that the little eight-year-old would steal a pair of keys in which she was grateful for.

However, she was having problems with remembering to lock the door once she left the cell. Lately, she had been accidentally leaving the boy's cell door unlocked even though she closed it. She wondered if the boy had figured out she constantly left the lock unlatched. He probably would've walked out if he did so Mikan had to force herself to believe he didn't know.

Still, suspicions were rising among the AAO. They didn't know who, but they were suspecting someone else at the boy's cell besides them and were trying to help him escape. She shuddered as she remembered when Shiki had come in a week ago with a horrible cut on his cheek for being a suspect by the snake-man. She felt guilty, but she couldn't stop her nightly antics.

She finally opened the wooden door where it led to his cell and walked passed all the empty cells straight to his. He was there; awake as if he was waiting for her to come.

"Hey" she greeted quietly with a shy smile. She then proceeded to unlock the cell and walk in, never shutting the door behind her as she always did. She took her usual spot in front of him and sat.

His blue eyes flickered before turning back to her with a slight question. Mikan gave him an apologetic smile realizing what he was asking.

"He's in my room sleeping. I think all this running around was making him exhausted" she said and placed the plate of pizza beside him.

"Today's Friday, which means it's football night" she started. She then launched into an explanation on what goes on during football night and that she usually has pizza on Fridays while watching the football game with the males. Her shyness disappeared as she used her hands for gestures to describe her male comrades while watching the game. She laughed at a couple of parts and she caught his eyes light up a little as if he was laughing with her. Mikan also discovered that through her visits that he never smiled, as if he refused to smile. She never asked about it knowing he wouldn't like that question and he wouldn't answer her anyway.

Through her visits with the blonde boy, she hadn't asked him questions like she had on her first encounter with him. Instead, she told him stories about her life. How she met Kyon, incidents at Christmas that Uncle Reo had forbidden her to say even though she tells others anyway, what pranks she had done and what the results were. He seemed to enjoy them so she made sure to only tell him funny stories.

"They always mope when their team doesn't win" Mikan said to him with a grin, "Mama says they're all idiots for getting worked up about some silly game, but they always counter by making fun of chick flicks. I have to agree with them because I really don't get all the drama that's spewing out. Personally, I find football to be more fun to watch" Mikan explained.

The boy kept his attention on her. His once tense posture was relaxed when she came to visit him. At least he was making eye-contact with her now instead of ignoring her as she talked.

As she was telling another story, Mikan noticed that he had picked up the plate with the piece of pizza and began to timidly eat it. It made Mikan very happy that he was eating her food since she noticed he never touched the stale bread that was left for him. She had convinced him to drink the water though for his sake.

"—and that's when Uncle Reo said that if I stay up late, I'll get stupid because it's bad for my brain development or something. I don't know if he was lying or not to just help mama out with taking me to bed, but I'll have to ask someone else, preferably someone way smarter than Uncle Reo" Mikan chuckled as she said that.

"Nn, did you know that my mama and Uncle Reo went to the same school together?" Mikan asked excitedly as she stood up. "My mama was Uncle Reo's senpai and he was the first person besides my mom and the doctor to hold me when I was born" she beamed. Uncle Reo had told her that story many times and often bragged to the others that he was the first to hold Mikan after Yuka, which they would respond by throwing things at him to get him to shut up.

It was a moment of silence before Mikan spoke again.

"I wonder what real schools are like. I don't know since I was home schooled all my life, but mama says it's not anything special" Mikan said in a solemn tone. She then let out a sigh and sat down again. "But that doesn't mean I don't stop thinking about it"

He kept his eyes on her as she said that. Her chocolate brown eyes stared at the floor. She was too absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't hear the shuffle of movement until she felt a hand on her shoulder causing her to jolt. Her eyes looked up in surprise.

The boy was now kneeling in front of her with a hand on her shoulder in comfort. He looked upon her sadly with lesser dim blue eyes. Mikan had noticed that his eyes had become slightly brighter during her visits with him.

"Thanks" she mumbled shyly. She didn't know why she did it, but she had reached up and patted his head. "Onii-chan is very nice" she told him with a soft smile. He looked down at the ground embarrassed and she caught his cheeks tinted red.

It was a moment of silence before Mikan had rose up and dusted off her pants.

"I better go now, Kyon might've woken up and is probably wondering where I am" she said to him with a sad smile. She then turned away and began walking to the cell door.

Nonetheless, though, something jerked her back and she turned with wide eyes towards the blonde boy who was currently gripping her arm.

"Wait," his soft voice croaked for not using it in a long time, "I need your help"

**--**

**Karin-chan: Hah! I got the threes! In your face Natsume!  
**

**Natsume: Shut up**

**Karin-chan: Moving on, I'm ending the chapter here. Oooh, what's Ruka gonna ask Mikan? Find out next chapter**

**Natsume: Have any fives?**

**Karin-chan: Erm **_**(shifty eyes) **_**…no…**

**Natsume: Hey look over there!**

**Karin-chan: What? **_**(Turns around to look where Natsume pointed)**_

**Natsume: **_**(takes Karin-chan's fives and runs away) **_**sucker**

**Karin-chan: What the--? Natsume! Get back here with my fives! **

**See ya next time! **


	5. Indecision

**Karin: okay people, I made a really dumb mistake on my part. **

**Natsume: Did you leave your keys on your dresser again making you get locked out of your house?**

**Karin: NO! And I only did that once! ONCE! **

**Natsume: **_**Sure**_

**Karin: Ahem, anyway, before Natsume rudely interrupted me, I would like to point out that I named the third and forth chapters incorrectly. You see, from the beginning of making this story, I wanted to title the chapters on emotions or feelings that were in the chapter, and the stupid me forgot that so the chapter titles in the chapter guild thing are the actual titles of those two chapters. **

**Natsume: …that was the dumbest thing I have ever heard. **

**Karin: I choose to ignore you, young padawon **

**Natsume: **_**(twitches) **_**Did you just refer to me as something from Star Wars?**

**Karin: … Maybe… young padawon…**

**Natsume: Stop that! **

**Disclaimer: **Don't own, just plot.

**Replies to Reviews from Chapter Four:**

**HinamoriSenna- **Hmmm, maybe, maybe not. I'm not going to spoil it.

**Starburstxx- **thanks for the compliment…and now that you mention it, I never did get my fives back. NATSUME!!! GET BACK HERE WITH MY FIVES!!! (Runs off to chase Natsume).

**Blizzel- **I'm not telling.

**Niceladysakura- **Well, I believe it's because Ruka's personality is cold like it was before he met Mikan. And the fact that Mikan seems to be apart of the organization that had taken him and Natsume prisoner in the first place so that's probably the biggest reason. And don't worry, Mikan will meet Natsume soon. The meeting is all planned out in my head and I can't wait to write it.

**-kradraven- - **It's both M/R and M/N. I'm glad you like Mikan.

**Yuuka Tanari- **Thank you; I am humbled by your compliments.

**Ai-chi- **Ehehe, sorry about the long wait for the update. I hope you like the chapter anyway.

**Petalsarefallingxoxo- **I still haven't gotten my fives back… stupid Natsume.

**Xx-Sakura-Mikan-xX- **Sorry for the wait.

**Luna- **I'm very happy that you like this fic.

**JSparkles444- **I'm touched that so many people like this story.

**Fanficlover567- **I'm starting to feel really, really guilty right now for not updating in so long (sweat drops).

**Gabyrendon- **Glad you like it.

**TwiDawnLight- **Here's the update all ready for you to read XD

**Vk-kuran- **thank you for complimenting.

**

* * *

**

**Sui Generis**

**Chapter Five**

**Indecision**

**-**

**-**

**-**

A soft sigh escaped her lips as Mikan stared up at the ceiling from her bed. She wore a long sleeve navy hoody with her usual cargo brown shorts and sneakers. Her trademark cat hat atop her head.

Kyon sat on top of her stomach looking at her in curiosity. His master has been oddly quiet lately, like something was on her mind. And something that was on Mikan's mind for a while was never a good sign.

The fat cat meowed to get his master's attention. She made no reaction to portray she noticed it. Kyon whined a little louder in an effort to get her attention.

After what seemed like forever, the eight-year-old turned her gaze from the ceiling to her impatient cat. She raised an eyebrow as he looked at her with an accusing look—like it was a crime for ignoring him for this long.

She brought up a hand tiredly and petted his fur slowly. She looked at him for another few seconds before looking back at the ceiling in dismay. Still, she continued her soft petting as to not have the cat whine anymore.

Mikan had bigger thoughts on her mind after all than her cat.

**-----------------------------**

_Flashback (Friday Night) _

_It was a moment of silence before Mikan had rose up and dusted off her pants._

"_I better go now, Kyon might've woken up and is probably wondering where I am" she said to him with a sad smile. She then turned away and began walking to the cell door._

_Nonetheless, though, something jerked her back and she turned with wide eyes towards the blonde boy who was currently gripping her arm._

"_Wait," his soft voice croaked for not using it in a long time, "I need your help"_

_Silence engulfed the cell chamber as Mikan stared at the blonde boy. It wasn't until a minute had past had Mikan's eyes become the size of saucers and her mouth opened wide. _

"_EEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!" she yelled out. The blonde boy alarmed cupped his hand over her mouth making sure that no one had heard her. Luckily, everyone was far away to hear such a yell so they were safe. When the blonde let the younger girl go, she began blabbering profusely. _

"_O-onii-chan! D-did Onii-chan j-j-just ta-alk?! Was I just i-imagining Onii-chan talking?!" she squeaked out in surprise. _

_The blonde boy turned his blue eyed gaze to the floor in embarrassment. _

"_It's not like I couldn't talk…" he muttered. Mikan stared at him with that expression mixed with disbelief and amazement still in place. _

"_Ah! But this is the first time Onii-chan's ever talked to me!" she said excitedly. "That means Onii-chan's warmed up to me a little" she told him smiling. _

"_You're weird" he told her looking at the floor. _

_Mikan just continued smiling like there was no tomorrow. Suddenly, his earlier words repeated themselves in her mind and her expression changed to confusion. _

"_Nn, Onii-chan," she called getting the blonde's attention; "You said something earlier about needing help?" questioned Mikan. _

_The boy seemed to have remembered what she was speaking about for his eyes widened in recollection and urgency. And with that urgency, he hastily grabbed her shoulders and pulled her a little closer in desperation. _

"_Did you ever see another boy? He's got raven hair and the same age as me!" the boy asked her hurriedly. "Have you been talking to him like me?" he asked Mikan. _

_Mikan just stared at him before thinking about his inquiries. Was he talking about the other boy that was with him at the docks? Probably so for he and the boy from the blonde's description both have raven hair. _

_Finally, Mikan shook her head sadly. The blonde boy's questions made her realize she hadn't succeeded in finding her other playmate. Drat! Back to the drawing board. _

_A sorrowful look came upon the boy's features when he saw her shaking her head. His hands dropped from her shoulders to rest at his sides. Mikan raised an eyebrow at his change in mood, but didn't say anything. _

"…_I see" he choked out at last. "So you can't tell me if he's alright or not I guess…" he added. _

_Suddenly, something clicked inside Mikan's brain. Now she really felt like slapping herself for being so stupid. She really should've seen this coming a mile away. _

_And she calls herself a mastermind prankster too. Truly an idiotic misconception on her part. _

"_Onii-chan… is raven-haired Onii-san Onii-chan's friend?" Mikan asked at last. _

_The blonde boy's head sprung up to look at her. That was when she saw it. The worry and concern so clear in his eyes. He may try to hide it but she knew that was what was shimmering in those oceanic depths. _

_They were friends, she realized. Close, loyal friends. _

_Something that she never had with other children. _

_Jealousy crept its ugly head out in the pit of her stomach at that moment. So this is what friendship was like. You're worried if you don't know about the well-being of your friend and care about them deeply._

_She could feel it. The fact that the blonde boy cared a lot about the raven-haired boy. She could see he was worried for his friend. That he wanted to know if he was okay. It wasn't fair, she thought, that she didn't have anyone to refer to her as "friend" and care about her. Sure, she had her family, but it just wasn't the same. Family is supposed to love you. They're supposed to laugh and smile with you. They're supposed to be concerned about you and make sure you're okay. _

_Friends were entirely different from family. With friends, you can share secrets and talk about anything. Let lose and laugh freely without the judging gazes of your peers. Run and hide in a secret place that only the two of you know of. Lend a shoulder to the other if their family made them cry. _

"_Yeah," he nodded. Mikan could've sworn his lips uplifted a little into a smile, but it was gone before she could make anything of it. _

_Seeing him like that. Seeing the clear devotion he had for his friend, something inside made the jealous monster fade away. She was touched and awed. Too awed to feel envy. _

_All of a sudden, completely on impulse, Mikan reached out and grasped his shoulders in a tight grip. His surprised blue eyes met her determined chocolate ones. _

"_I can find Onii-san for Onii-chan!" she exclaimed. "After all, I already found Onii-chan so it won't be hard to find Onii-san too!" she said her eyes burning in determination. _

"_But—"however Mikan cut him off from dismissing her. _

"_That's what Onii-chan wanted me to do from the start, isn't it?" she demanded of him. "I'm sure that was what Onii-chan's true intention was! To tell him where Onii-san is!" _

"_How can you expect to find—"again, she cut him off. _

"_I'm a mastermind prankster! Don't doubt my superior abilities to find Onii-san!" she told him with a tone of offense as if he had personally insulted her. _

_She let go of his shoulders and clenched her fists. Her eyes burning like amber fire. _

"_I swear to you I'll find Onii-san! You just wait and see!" with that, she turned to go out of the cell. "And Sakura Mikan never goes back on her word!" she growled out. _

_However, as she was about to take another step, she heard his quiet voice still in shock. _

"_I'm… I'm Nogi Ruka" he said at last looking at the floor. "And thanks," he said sincerely, but didn't gaze at her. _

_End of Flashback_

**-----------------------------**

Mikan let out another sigh opening her chocolate eyes. She couldn't believe she just burst out all of that. She supposed this was what Uncle Shiki would call "leaping before thinking".

And think she did not. Why on earth did she have to say all of that? Yes, she learned Onii-chan's name which made her happy, but her current problem at hand crushed that happiness to a pulp.

She had to admit, the blonde was right in asking how she can find his friend. Because in reality, Mikan was pretty positive that it wouldn't be easy as pie. In fact, it would probably be harder to locate her other playmate than Onii-chan!

"_We haven't found out the alice of the blonde boy, but the Kuro Neko tries to use his alice when he isn't so weak. However, the alice barriers drain his strength and stop him from doing anything that could let him escape" _Uncle Shiki's words drifted into her mind.

"…Kuro Neko?" she whispered aloud. She doubted that was the boy's real name. But in the short glimpse she had caught of him at the docks, his hair was as black as a black cat and his eyes contained a cat-like quality.

"_Still has some spark left in him I see"_

Mikan felt a cold shiver running along her spine while closing her eyes. Kanbu's voice sleek in her mind. Another obstacle in the way of finding the raven-haired boy. It was already suspicious enough that she's been sneaking around to see the blonde boy, but it would even get more risky if she were to go around searching for her other playmate as well.

A flash of Uncle Shiki with a horrible cut on his cheek entered her cloudy mind making her shut her eyes tighter. She shook her head in denial in order to will the image to go away. What if Uncle Shiki was hurt again? What if it was someone else this time? She didn't want to have any of her family members hurt because of her.

"_Well, eventually, he'll break. Both of them will"_

"No!" she shouted out. Her eyes snapped open and she sat up abruptly making Kyon fall off her stomach with a yelping meow. "I can't let snake-man get the best of me!" she snarled out in distaste at the prospect of giving up.

Ruka's face flashed in her mind from Friday night.

She couldn't do it. She couldn't abandon her promise to Ruka. That look on his face. The spark of hopefulness in his ocean blue eyes. She couldn't crush it. She couldn't stand to send it to oblivion.

The raven-haired boy was his friend. He was worried for his friend. Wouldn't she hope for someone to find Kyon if he were lost if she couldn't do it herself? Wouldn't she want to keep her playmates happy?

Of course she would! And if finding the raven-haired boy made Onii-chan happy, she would find him. It was her duty to ensure her playmates' happiness.

Plus, she would get to meet her other playmate if she found him. That was a bonus of course.

**------------------------------**

Mikan let her head plop on the kitchen table with a groan. A sense of déjà vu flooded her miserable being. Didn't this happen before?

The young eight-year-old was right in assuming that the raven-haired boy would be harder to find. She had spent the last three days following everyone and anyone who she suspected to know where the raven-haired boy was.

And how was this line of action going you ask?

Absolutely, positively, downright, _failure_.

What the hell?! Even Uncle Shiki hadn't led her anywhere remotely near a dungeon! It was like no one was even bothering to go to the raven-haired boy! Sure, she had seen someone go down to where Ruka was twice a day, but not once had she seen them go anywhere else.

It was truly not a good day for the mastermind prankster extraordinaire.

"What is it this time?" Uncle Ishimori sighed out as he passed her the Fruit Loops.

"My plans are being foiled" Mikan grumbled out. Ishimori raised an eyebrow at her statement.

"I doubt you're backed into a corner" he said dismissively.

"Blah! Says you" Mikan replied grumpily.

"And you call yourself a mastermind" Uncle Reo said happening to hear his favorite chibi's dilemma. "True masterminds know never to give up—like myself for instance" he said in a cocky tone of voice.

"Are you implying that you and I are on the same level Uncle Reo?" Mikan asked in a tone of suspicion. An offended expression was set on her face.

"Pssh, more like I'm on a level higher" Reo told her poking her forehead. Mikan glared at him in outrage.

"Says you! Who said I'm giving up? I'm just facing a dead end right now! I have no intention of giving up!" Mikan told her Uncle Reo and jumped off her chair. As she passed Reo's chair, she kicked one of his chair legs and walked out of the kitchen. Once she was gone, Ishimori turned to the red haired male.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" he asked the cocky man. To this, Reo only raised an eyebrow.

"Pssh, as if—I really am much smarter than that chibi" Reo told Ishimori making Ishimori sweat drop.

Cocky indeed.

**-------------------------------**

She was getting nowhere with her following Uncle Shiki and any other person who knew about her playmates. All it was doing was making her go around in constant circles and that is something Mikan wasn't pleased of.

She had to take it a step higher. Get her hands dirty.

If only that plan didn't scare her to death.

Mikan counted to three as she quietly stepped into the room. It had a desk, computer, a chair, and some bookshelves. Just as she thought, no snake-man was there.

Yes, this was her plan. Albeit sneaking into Kanbu's office was probably a death wish on her part, but if she wanted to get some information, she needed to go with the higher ups of the monarchy. And snake-man was the highest of them all. He was sure to know the whereabouts of the raven-haired boy.

"Stay at the doorway and be a lookout, okay Kyon?" she ordered her chubby cat. Kyon meowed and went to the doorway showing he understood. With that done, Mikan then turned back to approach Kanbu's desk.

She was careful of course. She made sure that she didn't leave any evidence of her presence in his office less she wants the Medusa's threats to be at her. Opening drawers, she didn't find any documents mentioning her playmates. Being an eight-year-old, she didn't understand most of the words used. On the other hand, even if she did understand, she would find that none of the documents mentioned any Kuro Neko.

"Ugh! My head's beginning to hurt" Mikan groaned. Too many big words for her eight-year-old mind to take. Allowing her head to plop on the keyboard in misery, a beeping sound caught her attention.

"Eh?" Mikan let out as she raised her head. The beeping stopped, but the once black monitor was no longer black anymore. Getting a closer look, Mikan allowed her curiosity to control her.

There, on the screen, was a small picture of the Kuro Neko. Beside his picture was some information and statistics she assumed. She didn't bother reading it for she knew it was too big for her child mind to comprehend. But one thing did catch the child's attention.

_Hyuuga Natsume_

His name was Natsume. Onii-san's name was Natsume.

All of a sudden, Kyon startled her by jumping into her lap in a panic. Mikan stopped staring at the screen to give him a repenting look.

"Kyon, I told you to be—"she was interrupted by the door opening and a man's voice drifted in. Mikan's face paled as she knew who's voice it was exactly.

Kanbu's voice.

"I want results Shiki, not useless information on the same thing" Kanbu told him in an angry tone.

"I understand, sir" Shiki said to his superior. However, though, his eyes widened for a fraction of a second. Did he just see…?

"Shiki! Pay attention!" barked Kanbu. Shiki turned his head back to the man obediently like a dog.

"Forgive me sir, I was distracted momentarily" Shiki apologized. Kanbu nodded showing he was forgiven then began walking towards his desk.

Mikan's heart was pounding wildly against her rib cage. So loud; she was _sure_ Kanbu could hear it. That he was torturing her with the suspense. Kyon didn't dare to make a sound as Mikan held him tight under the desk away from prying eyes.

She didn't move; Mikan was pretty sure she wasn't even breathing. Oh Kami-sama she was done for! In her mind she was screaming about how stupid she was for getting distracted. Kyon must've been meowing a couple of times to warn her before he jumped into her lap. She was just too absorbed at the screen to hear it.

_Ba-Thump. Ba-Thump. Ba-Thump. _

The sound of her heartbeat in her ears was suffocating! It was maddening! Slowly chipping away at her sanity as Kanbu came closer. He was behind the desk now. His hand gripping the chair to pull it out. He would see her; surely he would see her when he moved to sit down.

It was terrifying.

"Kanbu-sama," Shiki started just as Kanbu was about to pull out the chair that was blocking Mikan from view, "I think I do have information that might catch your attention" Shiki explained his face still emotionless.

"Do you now?" Kanbu said looking interested. "Well, let's hear it" he commanded Shiki.

"You'll have to come closer sir," Shiki said off to the side of the room away from the door. "Even the walls have ears" he told Kanbu, but instead his eyes were trained on the desk.

"Honestly Shiki, this is getting irritating" Kanbu said in his smooth and sleek tone. His snake like eyes narrowed in distaste at the man, but abided by walking away from his desk and near Shiki. "Either you have something for me or you don't. Don't waste my time with this useless squabble"

Seeing that snake-man had moved away from his desk, Mikan and Kyon crawled out and looked to see if the coast was clear. Kanbu's back was to them and as soon as Mikan had seen that, her adrenaline pushed her to crawl speedily out of his office with Kyon not far behind.

Shiki's eyes turned back to Kanbu when he saw their extra guest get away safely. He made a note to speak to his niece later, but for now, he would let her go.

"So far we have only been using pain on the Kuro Neko to get him to talk, but perhaps we should try a different approach?" Shiki suggested.

"What do you purpose then?" Kanbu asked smoothly.

"Simply that. Try a different approach to bend him the way we want" Shiki replied still with the same emotionless expression. He then bowed his farewell and walked towards the door. "Excuse me, Kanbu-sama. I have to go now"

With that he walked out the door.

**--------------------------------------**

Running clumsily down the hallways of the AAO, Mikan's heart still pounded in her ears. Sweat dripped down her brow as her legs felt like jelly.

She could've been caught. Snake-man could've found her.

If it wasn't for Uncle Shiki being there, she was pretty sure she would be in a whole lot of trouble. Mikan didn't really understand what was going on, but one thing was for sure—Kanbu would do a lot more of punishing than Mama's time out if he found her.

And that's what truly scared her. The possibilities of what he could do to her. Kanbu was not a good person—as proof of her mother's warnings—and he took pleasure in others' pain. He was heartless; cold; unfeeling. He could hurt her, a child, and not lose a wink of sleep over it.

And that's what terrified her.

Thank Kami-sama for Uncle Shiki! If he wasn't there—suddenly her train of thought came to an abrupt halt.

"_Even the walls have ears" _

Did that mean… did Uncle Shiki know she was there? Did he know that she was in Kanbu's office? She shuddered as a chilling feeling went down her spine. That possibility would bring an onslaught of explaining. She would have to lie through her teeth convincingly enough for Uncle Shiki not to notice her plans. Her entire plan would be ruined if Uncle Shiki—or anyone for that matter—knew about her sneaking around.

Arriving at her destination, the child took out the keys she carried with her at all times and unlocked the door leading down to the dungeons she had ventured to so many times in the past few weeks.

She couldn't do it! She couldn't take it anymore! Her close encounter with snake-man honestly and absolutely frightened her to the point of taking back what she had said. She couldn't keep doing this anymore.

Scurrying down the stairs when her legs felt like jelly probably wasn't the best thing for as in the next couple of seconds, Mikan lost her footing on the stone steps and began tumbling down the stairs. Kyon quickly followed after her to ensure his master's safety.

Landing painfully on the floor, Mikan let out a whimper as she sat up to see her left knee bleeding. Tears welled up in her eyes and she bit her lip to hold back the sobs that might give away her location.

Kyon meowed in worry when he reached her. The poor thing was biting her lip so hard it was starting to bleed. Kyon licked the wound on her knee in a comforting manner as to make her feel better.

Nonetheless, the tears began falling despite the comforting gesture. Not only from the pain but from how pathetic she was. How cowardly she was as to back out of her promise to Ruka just because she was scared of snake-man.

How could she face him? How could she look into his eyes and say she's given up on finding Onii-san? What kind of horrible person was she? She gave Ruka hope to find Onii-san and she failed.

She truly was an idiot.

Moving her leg slightly in order to get up, something under her made a strange creaking sound. _But stone doesn't make creaking sounds like that,_ she thought to herself, _the kind of thing that makes a creaking sound like that is… _

Mikan looked down to find her sitting not on the stone floor that she usually steps on when she arrives at the bottom of the steps, but something else entirely.

A trap door. She was sitting on a wooden trap door.

It was no wonder to her how she didn't notice it. It was well hidden from her already disadvantaged eyes well into the shadows. Why, if she only stepped a little farther when she usually landed on the stone floor from walking down the stairs, she would've found it sooner.

Wiping her tears, Mikan stared at it in awe. Curiosity and her desire to explore bubbled in the pit of her stomach ushering her to open it. To see where it leaded.

And who was she to deny that urge?

Moving off of the trap door, she noticed that it needed a key to unlock. Taking out the keys, she fished through the right one to unlock the door. After five times of trying, Mikan heard the satisfying click of the door unlocking.

Placing the keys back in her pocket, Mikan ignored the stinging sensation of her knee and with all her might, pulled the heavy door up. Gently propping it up, old and narrow, cracked stone stairs leading into the depths of darkness greeted her.

Keeping a shaky hand under the heavy door, Mikan began climbing in the small stairway. Kyon meowed in protest, but followed nevertheless. Before going any further, Mikan softly maneuvered the trap door to lay on the other side of the floor as to not create a loud noise and so she could get out when she came back.

Upon finishing that task, she resumed her trek down the stairs keeping her hands on each side of the wall as to not trip and fall. She was slow and cautious constantly.

After a while, Mikan's feet touched the stone floor of the end of the stairs. Sighing in relief that she didn't have to go down anymore stairs, Mikan turned in the direction of a pitch dark hallway to her right—the only direction she could go to since it was the only narrow hallway down there.

Seeing that the cat was near panic, Mikan picked Kyon up and began walking down the infinite hallway, her quiet steps echoing slightly being the only sound. The atmosphere seemed desolate and eerie, but Mikan ignored it in order to find out what was at the end of this hallway. A voice in the back of her mind absently observed that the hallway was in the opposite direction of where Ruka was being held.

In seemed forever—being in that quiet isolation that is. She didn't bother counting the time she was taking or how long the hallway was exactly. Being too consumed with getting to her destination than to note other details it seemed.

A faint glowing in the distance caught the child's attention making her speed up in her pace. As she got closer and closer, she noticed a wooden door with a lit torch beside it. The flames dancing like it had all the time in the world.

Again, she needed another key to unlock the black padlock on the door. The cat ear-capped girl retrieved the keys without much of a fuss and proceeded to find the right key. She already used a couple so she could eliminate them from her options. Getting giddy, she impatiently fumbled with the remaining keys for a couple of seconds before getting the lock to unclick on the third try.

Kyon, now on the floor because Mikan had to put him down in order to look through the keys, looked wary of the whole entire situation; consequently, he followed his master cautiously with a gulp as she opened the door.

Why did he have a bad feeling about this?

The child ignored her cat's anxiety and looked around. There were two torches in all in the cobble stone room casting an orange flickering glow in the shadowy room. It wasn't small and cramped, but it wasn't large and vast either. Darkness was apparent as Mikan had to squint a little to see more clearly; not that it made any difference.

However, the thing most noticeable about the room was the iron bar cell—the only cell in the entire room.

Walking over to the iron bars, Mikan took out the keys again already used to the procedure. Getting it on the first try, she opened the cell door and stepped inside. Kyon backed away from the cell in fear—as if something forbidding was inside. He meowed in fear as to tell his master to come back.

The child turned back to Kyon raising an eyebrow at his behavior. Was he really that scared? He was even shaking. He looked ten times as more terrified than when she went down to Ruka's cell for the first time.

As Kyon made more whining noises with Mikan just staring at him in confusion, hateful crimson eyes stared right behind her.

* * *

……………………………**.**

**Karin: Woo! Finally done! Again, sorry it took so long. Hope you liked this chapter and hopefully I'll get the next one up sooner than I did for this one. Once again, sorry for the long wait people. Also, in case you guys were confused, Onii-chan is Ruka and Onii-san is Natsume; sorry if that got confusing. **

**Natsume: People are not going to be happy with the cliffhanger, you know. **

**Karin: (sighs) yeah… anywho! Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Or as I like to say, Happy Turkey Day! **

**Natsume: Can we go eat now? **

**Karin: Right, right! Hope you were satisfied with the chapter. Now, We're off to get some thanksgiving food. I'm starving! (turns to Natsume) Wait! Natsume, what are you doing?! You can't roast that turkey! It's not dead yet! **

**See ya Next time! **


	6. Hostility

**Karin: Yay! Another update from me. **

**Natsume: Oh joy—more nonsense from this moron. **

**Karin: Natsume! Stop being such a downer! Is this because I forgot about your birthday last year? **

**Natsume: Who cares about—**

**Karin: Hey everyone! This chapter is for Natsume's birthday since I updated the fifth chapter on his birthday without even realizing it until someone pointed it out. I knew I was forgetting something that day. **

**Natsume: And you're completely ignoring me (sweat drop)**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Gakuen Alice, but I do own the boxset now. Yay!

**Replies to Reviews from Chapter Five: **

**Babee-angel- **Hmm, we'll just have to see about that I guess. After all, Natsume is a big meanie at times (Natsume: *eye twitching*)

**PinkVanilla- **Thank you for telling me about Natsume's birthday. I knew I was forgetting something that day. Sorry about not updating sooner.

**Niceladysakura- **Oh dear lord, the horror if she was found by Kanbu! You're welcome for updating. Hope you continue to enjoy yourself.

**Gabyrendon- **Good to know you like this story.

**-kradraven—**who knows? Natsume's a mean person at times (Natsume: I'm seriously going to burn you, Karin)

**sherea- **sorry that this wasn't ASAP like you would've wanted. Hope you like the chapter anyway.

**TwiDawnLight- **See Natsume? It's not nice to burn turkey like that. Anyway, glad to see you like this. Yes, Mikan does get into a lot of trouble doesn't she? Poor Mikan having to deal with a POed Natsume.

**Chris3169512- **Thanks so much for reviewing every chapter. It was really nice of you. Yes, "Uncle Reo" does make him sounds old, doesn't it? lol And yes, surely Yuka will raise hellfire if Mikan is not taken care of properly. Hmmm, wonder if Kyon will replace Ruka's bunny… OMG what if the bunny gets jealous and tries to go after Kyon? (gasps) May Kami-sama be with Mikan if they ever find out she's the culprit and when she's with Natsume.

**Ms. Miscellaneous- **sorry if this wasn't as soon as you would've hoped, but hopefully you'll like this chapter anyway.

**Kuroi Hakumei- **it's good to hear that you like both my GA stories. Thanks for the compliment on my style of writing. Pleased to see you like it.

**Riropin- **Thank you. Happy to hear you like the plot.

**Nameless- **sorry this wasn't immediately. Hope you like the chapter anyway.

**Loverbear101- **Thank you very much! Hope to hear more from you in the future.

* * *

**Sui Generis**

**Chapter Six**

**Hostility**

**-**

**-**

**-**

It was so fast. So sudden that Mikan didn't realize what was happening. Something yanked her backwards shoving her to the floor roughly. Her wounded knee gave her a shock of pain making her wince along with the pain of being pushed to the ground.

Ragged breathing was heard above her as a weight settled itself on top of her making it impossible for her to escape. Opening amber eyes to examine the cause, Mikan found her assailant.

Confused Amber met Hateful Crimson.

"You have five seconds," he rasped out a little—obviously from lack of water and talking, "Before your hair goes up in flames, to give me those keys." he told her seriously. By his gaze alone, anyone could tell he meant it.

Mikan only stared up at him. She blinked a couple of times as the pain in her knee was throbbing. Innocent chocolate eyes just stared and stared.

"Are we playing a game?"

…Erm, anyone could tell he was serious _except_ Mikan that is…

The boy gave her a hard glare.

"Does it look like I'm playing with you, little girl?"

"This game is confusing. I don't even know the rules here." Mikan said. "Come on, you ain't being fair you know. You could've explained to me at least the rules before we started playing." she whined.

"This isn't a game you stupid girl! Where's your brain?!" the boy yelled down at her. Mikan's eye twitched when he said that. Stupid girl?! Who was he calling a stupid girl?

"Hey! I'll have you know I have a lot more intelligence in my pinky than Uncle Reo has in his whole body! You're the one who's stupid for thinking I'd play with you when I don't even know the game we're playing!" Then something occurred to her and her eyes widened, "Wait…" she squinted due to the poor lightening, but the features were recognizable.

Without warning, the eight year old sprung up from below the boy and got closer to his face. A delighted grin was on her features as she gazed at him.

"Kuro Neko-niisan! You're Kuro Neko, ne?" she asked him excitedly. However, the boy didn't answer her for when she moved so suddenly, he had to move suddenly as well when she came close to his face. A hiss of pain erupted from him.

"Stupid girl. So loud and annoying." he muttered.

"Hey… are you okay?" Mikan asked him hesitantly. At first she was happy because she had found Onii-chan's friend and her other playmate—and forgetting about his bad attitude in the process. She's eight, what can you do?—but then she actually began to take notice of his condition. His body was heavily bruised and several places had cuts on them. He also looked tired and fatigued—it was a miracle he had such good reflexes still. "Onii-san?" she called concerned.

"If you're just going to be useless and not even give me the keys then go away, stupid girl." he told her harshly. Under his breath he then said, "Damn, my alice stopped working of all times…" Obviously his alice was his only fallback in getting her to surrender the keys because she—being uninjured and full of energy—could easily escape him if he tried to take it by force. As shown when she popped up from under him when he was holding her down. He cursed himself for being so weak that a little girl could overpower him.

"Onii-san shouldn't push himself!" she exclaimed ignoring his first comment about her being stupid and not hearing the second comment. "If Onii-san wasn't feeling well, he should've said so!" Mikan reprimanded him, wagging an index finger in a "no-no" manner. Standing up urgently, she raced towards the opening of the cell. "I'll go get something that will help you feel better, okay?"

With that said—not even bothering to listen for any reply—Mikan ran out the door calling back to Kyon, "Take care of Kuro Neko nii-san while I'm gone, Kyon!" The cat whimpered and stayed as far away from the cell as possible.

* * *

Mikan's knee was screaming in pain, but she didn't ease up on her speed at all. The faster she got what she needed, the sooner she could get back to Kuro Neko nii-san. Despite the lack of lighting, Mikan could tell that he was badly injured from the way his posture was.

She wondered briefly why he was in that state in the first place. Her musings then went to Ruka who was also locked away for apparently no reason. Ruka was a good person, and she was sure that Kuro Neko nii-san was also a good person if Ruka nii-chan cared about him so much.

Then, if they were good people, why were they being locked away? It didn't make sense to Mikan, nor did she decide to continue pondering about the matter for she knew she wouldn't get an answer that way.

Tip-toeing to the cabinet in the kitchen where the first-aid kit was supposed to be, the brunette cat-ear capped girl carried it with both hands. Looking around, she began to backtrack out of the door quietly.

However, as she reached the doorway, her back hit something causing her to whirl around hastily, hiding the first-aid kit behind her back. Wide brown eyes stared up at what she bumped into.

She was sure her heart had stopped beating. Oh, she was positive it did.

Snake-man Kanbu stared down at her with a cold expression. His glasses reflected the cold, chilling atmosphere in his unwavering eyes. Fearful chocolate eyes gazed back at him. Was it her or did the temperature drop a few degrees? And was the room always this spinny or was it just her shaking legs?

"Um… ano…" Mikan stuttered out. She was too terrified to formulate an articulate sentence.

"You should watch where you're going, Sakura-chan." Kanbu told the little girl with a gentle smile, but Mikan saw in his eyes that this man was not even capable of gentleness of any kind. "With the way you're acting, one might think you're sneaking around and hiding something."

Kanbu then knelt down to her eye level. Raising a hand, his fingers lightly touched the wound on her knee. Slowly pressing a finger against the newly formed scab before he reopened it again with a harder pressure. Mikan let out a gasp of pain and surprise while the man watched in awe of fresh blood beginning to run down her leg slowly, enticingly. The eight-year-old trembled as the older man neared her.

"But then again, you live for that don't you? Being sneaky that is. I am like that myself—getting a thrill out of something considered a negative quality. It's just how we are I suppose." Medusa told the girl in her ear. His cold breath making her body become ice. "Remember though, there is always punishment when one is not careful and doesn't know their place."

The man then rose up from his kneeling position with that same gentle up-lift of his mouth.

"Good luck on whatever trick you plan to do today. They are quite amusing to all of us here. It gives us something to look forward to for a chance to smile also." Kanbu then turned to leave the kitchen. "Oh, by the way, do be careful though. We wouldn't want you to get hurt all the time, now would we?" with a sinister smile, he departed down the hall with Mikan standing there frozen in time. Her mind was slowly beginning to function again after a few minutes when Medusa left her.

When her thoughts finally caught up to her, she slumped to the tiled floor; her heart was beating so fast in horror. Oh god, what he could've done to her! That man was one not to be messed with. He could really harm her. She knew he could. Just the way he carried himself. The way that her mother told her to stay away from him. The way that no one really mentions him. He was someone to fear. Someone to avoid.

'_And I was alone with him!' _she screamed in her head. _'I was alone with him and he practically fed off my fear like a monster!' _

No doubt he was a cruel man. Was there even a kind bone in his body?! She didn't know, nor did she care to find out. That's one thing she's willing _not _to explore.

His words repeated themselves over and over again in her mind without her consent. His sadistic nature slithered elegantly through his speech without falter like a snake's hiss. He was like a snake—poised and ready to strike at her at any second.

And he terrified her without effort at all.

'_Does he know about… what I've been doing…?' _Mikan questioned herself afraid. _'Does he know and is just playing with my mind?!' _Because if he did, he was doing a fabulous job of messing with her mind!

But no, he couldn't have known, she concluded. If he had known what she was actually up to, he would be more threatening. He would cause her more pain since they were alone—he had the perfect chance to harm her without her mother interfering. No, he didn't know what she was doing. She was sure he didn't know.

'_That won't stop me from being extra careful though. This meeting has motivated me more to keep myself on my toes.' _she thought determined, and hurried back down to where the Kuro Neko was despite her frazzled nerves and now bleeding knee.

She gave a wince from the agony in her leg, but ignored it for the time being. Kuro Neko nii-san was suffering ten times as much as this measly wound. He came first, she told herself.

Creeping down the trap door and into the secret passageway, she hurried straight to the wooden door with the torch where the raven haired boy was on the other side. Opening it without hesitation, her eyes caught Kyon on the brink of fainting before her amber eyes trained themselves on the cell.

The cell which she apparently left open and the boy was now outside the cell on his hands and knees, panting heavily from exerting himself so much in his condition.

"Onii-san!" Mikan exclaimed and raced towards him. "Are you alright? You shouldn't move so much! It's bad for your injuries!" she scolded him while reaching to help him.

"Get away!" the boy warned her, glaring up at her with intense crimson eyes. He held up his hand, creating a ball of fire. "Come any closer and I'll burn you to a crisp." he threatened her. Mikan furrowed her brow and stepped closer to him. As she did so, his flames flickered. The eight-year-old didn't stop her trek to him and soon his flames were completely extinguished by the time she was in front of him.

"If you're hurt, how can I stay away?" Mikan glared down at him as if he was dumb. "Do I look like the type of person who would stand by while people are hurt in front of me?" With that said she bent down, hooked one of his arms around her shoulders, and proceeded to drag him back into the cell. "Stupid moron—you make no sense. Uncle Reo's like that sometimes too 'cept he's just an idiot, or at least that's what Mama says." Mikan told him and set him down while he stayed quiet throughout her speech.

"Reo? So you're one of those AAO bastards like him, huh?" the boy spat at her in a quiet tone, but Mikan heard him as she retrieved the first-aid kit. Hearing his statement made the girl bristle at his words.

"Hey! That's not nice to say! How would you feel if I said that about you?!" Mikan retorted, though she had no idea what "bastard" meant, she could tell it wasn't nice.

"Tch, you're annoying. Hurry up and leave already." the boy told her rudely causing Mikan to steam.

"Shut up! I'm not leaving until I help with your wounds!"

"I don't need help from an AAO bastard, you stupid girl!" he shouted at her.

"And I say you do! Stop being stubborn and let me help you! Why are you so mean?! We're trying to help you! The AAO and you are both alices! You should be nice!" the cat-ear capped girl yelled at him and clutched the handle of the first-aid kit tightly in outrage. He was so frustrating!

The next thing she knew, Mikan was pushed to the ground surprisingly by the weakened boy. She let out a cry as her already wounded knee scraped against the stone harshly. Tears of pain and hurt welled up in her eyes as she sat up to stare in shock at the boy who pushed her away. The first-aid kit was a couple of feet away from her from it flying out of her hands when she was pushed.

"Nice? You want me to be nice to you bastards? You want me to be nice to you assholes who put me in here? You want me to be like a dog and do whatever you say?" the boy glared at her with ice in his eyes. "Go back to your mommy and shut the hell up. Who the hell do you think you are ordering me around? You, a stupid girl who doesn't know anything, have no right to even be near me talking shit." he sneered at her.

It was silent in the cell with neither of them moving. The atmosphere seemed to echo with the boy's words. Kyon ran out the cell, most likely to get away from the boy and to safety out of the dungeons.

"Liar…" she whispered. Tears slid down her cheeks as she lifted her face to look at him. "Liar! Liar! Liar! We would never do something like that! It was someone else! Stop blaming us because someone else locked you up! Mama, Uncle Reo, Uncle Shiki, Uncle Ishimori—none of them would ever do something like that!" Mikan cried standing up. "You're a bad person! You _should_ be locked up! No good person would say those things about my family!" she exclaimed backing up. Once she was out of the cell, she slammed it shut so hard that it locked automatically from the force of her push.

Slamming the wooden door behind her, she clumsily locked it and took herself far away from the dungeons back to the regular levels of the AAO base. She shut the door leading down to the dungeons and traveled as far away from that door as she could—never looking back at it.

"Mikan?" asked a voice making Mikan look up into the eyes of her mother, Azumi Yuka with Kyon at the woman's feet showing he had went to retrieve her. Yuka's eyes became concerned when she caught sight of her daughter's tears and saddened face. "Mikan, what's wrong?" she kneeled down to pick up her daughter. It was rare for her child to cry like this. She usually made exaggerations and silly statements, but she never just stayed quiet and solemn when she was crying unless it was really serious.

"Only bad people get locked up, right?" Mikan asked sniffling. "If a person was good, no one would lock them up, right?" she clutched her mother's shirt.

Yuka inwardly cringed at her daughter's question. Her thoughts were drifting to the dungeons before she kicked those thoughts out of her mind. Her child needed her right now. She held her child close and nodded.

"Yes, only bad people would be locked up, Mikan." Yuka whispered, ignoring the guilty clench in her gut. "If a person was good, they wouldn't be locked away, okay?" she rubbed Mikan's back consolingly.

Meanwhile Mikan sobbed against Yuka's shoulder, her thoughts on her two playmates. She was wrong. She had to be wrong about her judgment of them being good. Ruka nii-chan and that boy both hated her when she first arrived. They did not like her family. They hated the AAO. She remembered Ruka when she went to see him for the first time. How he ignored her and refused to speak to her. Did he blame her family too? Did he blame her family for his imprisonment? They were wrong though! Her family was good! They wouldn't hurt anyone! She knew they wouldn't! Ruka and that boy were the bad people!

Disregarding the images of her memories with Ruka appearing in her brain, Mikan cried from her confusion, hurt, and anger.

Where was she going to go from here?

* * *

Natsume cursed as he once again tried for a flame with no success. That damn barrier was indeed in place again. His weakened state from the injuries he gained from the AAO's beatings didn't help much either.

So far it's been over two weeks—maybe three—since he's been in this blasted cell. And every day an AAO member has come down here to attempt to convince him to switch sides. Or they would try to get the academy's secrets out of him. While he wasn't a fan of the academy, it was his job not to blab or else his precious people would be harmed. Aoi was still at the school after all.

'_But Ruka's here. I'm surprised they haven't threatened me with him yet.' _the boy thought referring to the AAO. So far they only beat the crap out of him. Still, that didn't change the fact that they already might be beating Ruka like they were doing to him. The thought made his blood boil at the AAO and himself for being so weak. He had no idea where Ruka was or any information on his condition.

'_They want us to be as isolated as possible.' _Natsume concluded. _'The more isolated we are, the more easy for us to crack and lose sanity this way.' _

In his time in being here, Natsume had gained some information on his prison. It seemed that they placed a nullifying barrier over his cell to prevent him from breaking free—someone, Shidou he was called, had the Barrier Alice apparently—however, it was only active when the cell door was closed. This discovery came to him on accident when one of the AAOs opened the cell door to step inside his cell and he felt his alice returning to him. He managed to singe the man—must've been a newbie because he didn't come back again after that—before the man raced out, locking the cell behind him.

His meals were scarce—only water and a crust of stale bread—both of which he refused to touch. To that, recently, a man named Shiki would come and forced some pills and water down his throat after his beatings.

"_These pills carry the same nutrients as a regular meal so you don't end up dying on us since you refuse to eat. Though they have the drowsy side effect which dulls your motor skills and strength as if you were tired." _Shiki's words came back to him.

'_So they're keeping me alive but dulling down my strength enough to keep me under their control.' _Natsume glared at the opposite wall, his mood sourer than usual.

"_If you're hurt, how can I stay away? Do I look like the type of person who would stand by while people are hurt in front of me?"_

Ah yes, there was the source of his irritation. The stupid girl who had a big mouth. He would be lying if he said he wasn't puzzled at the arrival of someone, a little girl no less, at his cell when he usually didn't get visitors at that time.

But when he saw she left the cell door open, he saw his chance to escape that hellish prison. She was so small and he was sure she would easily allow him to get away because of his alice returning.

However, that wasn't the case. Instead of being frightened, she thought they were playing a game! And then she was suddenly happy when she recognized him! It made no sense!

What especially made no sense was that his alice suddenly stopped working. It was fine, but then when he got near the girl, its energy went out—as if it was a candle being blown out by a breeze. Maybe he was tired or something, but then again, he was sure he was using his alice on her; so, why didn't it work?

When she had left—stupid moron left the cell door open while she went out—he dragged himself out of the cell despite his serious injuries and weakened state from fatigue and the pills stuffed down his throat. Too bad she came back and tried to help him back inside the cell. Obviously he didn't want to go back in there so he threatened her with his fire that was, thankfully, working again.

'_But then she put it out again when she came near me.' _Natsume furrowed his brow pondering. He vaguely remembered someone screaming "NO!" and tackling him to the ground, putting out his flames as they did so, when he and Ruka were fighting the AAO. _'It was most likely her since her size and voice match up to that time. Tch. So it's her fault that Reo was able to capture Ruka and me so easily.' _

Her words had stunned him when he threatened her to get away from him. The AAOs that he had encountered were all cruel and didn't give a crap about his injuries. They relished in giving him pain, not bothering to treat his wounds afterwards either. He gathered she was certainly an AAO, so why did she have compassion for him?

'_It could be a trick.' _Natsume's black op agent side chimed in. _'A child is the most innocent thing—no one would suspect them being devious.' _

That thought had occurred to him when she successfully got him back in his cell. It was useless trying to make his alice work since she was near him. On the other hand, he refused to have her treat him—it could be another form of poison to weaken him like the pills for all he knew—and she insulted him, calling him mean and yelling at him to be nice to her—to the AAO for helping him.

'_Where does that girl come off saying those morons are helping me?' _Natsume thought with anger. _'Like hell I'll be nice to the people who treat my friend and I like this.' _Crimson eyes narrowed at that.

Her statement had made him snap—and he let her have it, both physically and mentally. Her act was annoying him. He didn't buy her innocent kid look one bit. She was an AAO. No doubt she was trying to trick him for some glory among her superiors when they themselves couldn't convince him to do anything.

"_Liar! Liar! Liar! We would never do something like that! It was someone else! Stop blaming us because someone else locked you up! Mama, Uncle Reo, Uncle Shiki, Uncle Ishimori—none of them would ever do something like that! You're a bad person! You _should_ be locked up! No good person would say those things about my family!"_

Nevertheless, her reaction… her tears and words… he could see that wasn't an act. This caused him to think about his accusation of her tricking him. Her words were genuine as well as her belief in her "family." Was she deluded? Her words from before about the AAO helping him was making him believe that perhaps she was. Was she really that unaware on what was really going on?

"Stupid girl… making me think so much about her…" Natsume muttered. Whatever her intentions were, she obviously wasn't coming back after what had happened. Not that he cared. He had more important things to do—like planning to get out of here.

* * *

**Karin: Okay, there you have it! Sorry this took a year to update and I hope you enjoyed it. Oh, and Happy Birthday to Natsume once again since I'm updating this on his birthday again XD Anyway, yes, Mikan is very naïve and innocent to what's really going on. Remember, Yuka shielded her away from what the AAO's actually doing and made her look at them as family so of course Mikan would think they're good people and Natsume was bad. Additionally, the clues about the AAO being at fault were dismissed by her denial. Poor kid, ne? **

**Natsume: Tch. You really made me a hateful character in this. **

**Karin: Yeah… but then again, you were hateful at first in the series, weren't you? A hateful, antsy boy with issues… **

**Natsume: (lights a fire to chase the author)**

**Karin: Ah! Natsume, put that out! (runs away while the fire is chasing her) **

**Natsume: Reviews are highly appreciated. Thank you very much. (completely ignores Karin in the background) **

**See ya Next time! **


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